Siccia atriguttata Hampson, 1909

Volynkin, Anton V., 2023, Contribution to the knowledge of the genus Siccia Walker (= Aemene Walker, syn. n.) in the Afrotropics with descriptions of seventy-three new species, three new subspecies, and a check-list of Asiatic taxa of the genus (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae: Lithosiini), Ecologica Montenegrina 64, pp. 1-184 : 41

Siccia atriguttata Hampson, 1909

( Figs 83–85 , 339, 340 , 477 )

Siccia atriguttata Hampson, 1909 , Annals and Magazine of Natural History (8), 4 (22): 356 (Type locality: “ Angola, Bihé [Kuito]”).

Type material examined. Lectotype (hereby designated) (Figs) ( Fig. 83 ): male, “W. Africa | Bihe. | 1907- 128.” / blue ring label “ Syn- | type” / QR-code label with a unique number “NHMUK010914286” / “ Arctiidae | Brit. Mus. Slide | No. 6843 ♂ ” ( NHMUK).

Additional material examined. ANGOLA: 1 male, Bihé (Edw. Sanders) / Rothschild Bequest B.M. 1939-1 / unique number: NHMUK010916016, gen. prep. No.: NHMUK010314612 (prepared by Volynkin) .

ZAMBIA: 1 male, 1346m, Kambishi, Jiwundu , 11°54'39''S, 25°29'05''E, 18–19.x.2014, Light Trap, Smith, Takano & Oram leg., gen. prep. No.: AV4469 ( ANHRT) ; 1 male, 1160m, Lake Kashiba, Mpongwe , 13˚26'55''S, 27˚56'40''E, 25–26.x.2014, Light Trap, Smith, Takano & Oram leg., gen. prep. No.: AV3320 ( ANHRT) ; 1 male, 1187m, Lumangwe Falls, Kalungwishi River , 09˚32'33''S, 29˚23'17''E, 4–7.ii.2019, MV Light Trap, Dérozier, V., Mulvaney, L., Smith, R., Takano, H. leg., gen. prep. No.: AV5236 ( ANHRT) ; 1 male, 1166m, Ntumbachushi Falls, Ngona River , Luapula Prov., 09˚51'12''S, 28˚56'40''E, 1–3.ii.2019, Actinic Light Trap, Dérozier, V., Mulvaney, L., Takano, H. leg. ( ANHRT) ; 1 female, 1340m, Jiwundu Swamp (Miombo / Riverine forest mosaic), 11˚51'54''S, 25˚33'20''E, 29.x.–4.xi.2018, Actinic Light Trap, Aristophanous, M., Dérozier, V., László, G., Oram, D. leg., gen. prep. No.: AV5034 ( ANHRT) ; DRC: 1 male, Elisabethville [Lubumbashi], 14.vii.1934, Ch. Seydel leg., gen. prep. No.: AV6991 ( RMCA) ; 4 females, the same data as previous but 1.ii.1924, 14.xi.1934, 4.ii.1935, 2.viii.1938 ( RMCA) .

Note. The type series of the species included a male and a female ( Hampson 1909). In order to stabilise the nomenclature, the male syntype is hereby designated as the lectotype.

Diagnosis. The forewing length is 8.0–11.0 mm in males and 11.0– 11.5 mm in females. The species is externally reminiscent of S. chilambwe but distinguished by the somewhat smaller size, the narrower forewing, and the smaller spots on the costal and outer forewing margins. The male genital capsule of S. atriguttata differs from the other species in the species-group in the valva having almost parallel margins and a broad costal lobe, and the cucullus bearing a single process, which is strongly basally dilated and medially downcurved perpendicular to the axis of the valva. The vesica of S. atriguttata is the broadest in the species-group (in proportion to the phallus size), and characterised by the presence of the wide and dense cluster of robust spinules. The female genitalia of S. atriguttata are distinguished from the other similar congeners by the longest ductus bursae (in proportion to the ovipositor length) and the broad and gelatinous corpus bursae with an anterior half being densely covered in spinules.

Molecular data. The intraspecific divergence of COI-5P sequences calculated from three sampled specimens from various localities in Zambia is in the range of 0.15–1.08%. As the molecular data for the morphologically most similar species, S. mago and S. violetteae are currently unavailable, the COI-5P sequences of S. atriguttata were compared to other species in the group, among which S. grossagranularis is genetically the next-closest one, diverging from the current species by 3.31–3.97%.

Distribution. The species is currently known from Angola ( Hampson 1909), north-western Zambia and south-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (Katanga Province).

Figures

Figures 80–94. Siccia spp., adults. Depositories of the specimens: 80, 81, 84–88, 92–94 in ANHRT; 82 in MWM/ZSM; 83, 89 and 90 in NHMUK (©The Trustees of NHMUK); 91 in AKW.

Figures 337–340. Siccia spp., male genitalia. Depositories of the specimens dissected: 337 and 340 in ANHRT; 338 in MWM/ZSM; 339 in NHMUK (©The Trustees of NHMUK).

Figures 474–478. Siccia spp., female genitalia. Depositories of the specimens dissected: 474, 475, 477 and 478 in ANHRT; 476 in GMF-B.